(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to an improvement for carrying thermal energy in a heating process, and more particularly, to an energy-effective heat transfer oil boiler with a heat transfer buffer.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
A heat transfer boiler is commonly used in an industry to deliver the heat through a type of thermal liquid that is capable of withstanding a certain temperature to an installation that needs substantial amount of heat to operate. Heat transfer oil is one of the popular heat transfer media used for the above-mentioned purpose. A conventional heat transfer system is essentially comprised of a circulation loop including a heating boiler, a heat consumption installation, an oil-gas separator, and an oil circulation pump; one end of the air-gas separator is connected to a high-level tank through pipes; and the high-level tank contains heat transfer oil within and is provided with a vent. The operating procedures include: first, supplying heat transfer oil to the boiler so that the oil will then low through the pipes and into the system of heat consumption installation; after that, the heat transfer oil flows further through the oil-gas separator and the oil circulation pump to return to the boiler for being heated again to complete a cycle. The high-level tank, in the cycle, functions to supplement the amount of heat transfer oil within the circulation loop when the density of the heat transfer oil reduces due to a temperature drop, or to take in the excessive amount of heat transfer oil when the temperature of the heat transfer oil rises. In practical application, the conventional construction, as described above, has the problem that the volume of the heat transfer oil usually expands or reduces based on the temperature changes in the heat consumption installation; and temperatures of the heating boiler fluctuates readily. When the volume of the heat transfer oil expands, the heat transfer oil passing through the oil-gas separator flows into the high-level tank, causing the temperature of the high-level tank to rise. As the temperature rises, heat in the high-level tank dissipate, resulting in a waste of thermal energy. Meanwhile, a higher temperature in heat transfer oil implies a lower density, which forces the heat transfer oil floating over the surface and get deteriorated more quickly than otherwise, especially when it reacts with the air as the heat transfer oil passes through the vent. When the flow of heat transfer oil reduces due to a temperature drop, the temperature of the heat transfer oil supplemented by the high-level tank drops even more quickly, which adversely consumes the thermal energy of the heating boiler.